


The Forces Of Attraction

by iamthefacebehindthemask



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Boys Kissing, Established Relationship, First Meetings, Fluff, Getting Together, Getting to Know Each Other, Humor, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-28
Updated: 2018-01-03
Packaged: 2018-09-12 22:07:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9092629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamthefacebehindthemask/pseuds/iamthefacebehindthemask
Summary: Kei can't help but stare at the antics of two regular customers of the café he works at, who can't help but stare back at him, too.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my favorite OT3, and my take on the overused Coffeeshop AU :D 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this fanfic!
> 
> Note: In this story, Hinata and Kageyama meet Tsukishima for the first time only at the start of the story. So there is some canon divergence, but I'm going to keep all of them in character as much as possible.

Tobio woke up to the smell of shampoo and the sound of a hair dryer being used. In the reflection of the mirror, he saw his boyfriend grin at him.

“Good morning, sleepyhead! Rise and shine”, Shouyou exclaimed. Had this happened a few years ago, Tobio would have immediately told him to be quieter. However, living with Shouyou for three years and dating him for five had resulted in him getting acquainted with his unending exuberance.

Five years… oh, it was their anniversary; no wonder Shouyou was awake this early on a Saturday. Usually, they slept in on weekends. Tobio let his gaze wander all over Shouyou from where he sat on the bed, and took note of the brand new shirt, the care with which Shouyou styled his hair, and his trousers that Tobio loved. When their eyes met, he turned pink. Shouyou smiled impishly and spun around, eyes gleaming with mischief as he sauntered towards the bed. He placed a finger under his boyfriend’s chin and moved closer, and just as Tobio thought they were going to kiss, Shouyou leaned away and said, “Let’s save the good stuff for later. I actually do want to go on a date this year.”

Tobio knew exactly what his boyfriend was referring to. On their fourth anniversary, a seemingly innocent make out session had led to multiple rounds of sex, at the end of which both of them were too exhausted to go anywhere and had ordered food in, instead. While it wasn’t the case that they hadn’t enjoyed themselves, Tobio knew that Shouyou had been looking forward to going to the fancy restaurant they’d gotten a reservation at. Tobio himself was a man of simpler tastes; he didn’t mind if all their dates consisted of just staying in and eating instant ramen while watching a movie. But he also wanted to make his boyfriend happy, and he knew Shouyou loved it when they went out.

Also, he secretly enjoyed holding Shouyou’s hand on emptier streets. So it was a fair bargain.

Therefore, he held himself back from eliminating the distance between them. _Just a few more hours_ , he thought.

* * *

“Meet your new coworker, Tsukishima Kei! He’s a college student, like some of you. Tsukishima is going to be our new cashier, starting today. I hope all of you will help him get settled here as quickly and smoothly as possible. Tsukishima, welcome to our café”, the manager, Sawamura Daichi, announced. The rest of the staff echoed his welcome. Kei bowed courteously.

“Thank you, Sawamura-san, for this opportunity, and thank you all. I look forward to working with everyone”, he said softly. The heavy hint of monotony in his voice immediately threw everyone off; most of the people hired by Sawamura were extremely cheerful and friendly, and this new staff member didn’t seem to fit either of the two categories if first impressions were anything to go by. Kei sensed the questioning stares of his colleagues but paid no mind and focused on understanding his tasks, which Sugawara was explaining to him.

When Sugawara was done, Kei bowed graciously. “Thank you, Sugawara-san.”

Sugawara laughed and waved him dismissively. “You’re so formal, Tsukishima! But you can call me Suga: everyone else does. Good luck on your first shift!”

Kei pushed up his glasses, straightened his apron, and got to work.

* * *

As Tobio dressed, Shouyou popped back into their bedroom.

“Tobio, can we drop in for breakfast at our favorite café? I haven’t seen Daichi-san and Suga-san in so long, too!”

“Yeah.”

Fifteen minutes later, they were at their favorite café. While Shouyou went to greet Suga (perhaps the only one who could constantly keep up with his enthusiasm that early in the morning), Tobio stepped up to the cash register to order. It was only when he heard an unfamiliar voice that he actually looked at the cashier.

And he was blown away. Blonde hair, golden-brown eyes, a nonchalant expression. Tobio hadn’t been this affected by anyone since he had started dating Shouyou. The thought of his boyfriend brought him crashing back to reality and he focused on finishing placing his order and paying the bill. He dropped the change returned to him, and the cashier simply raised an eyebrow when he moved too slowly to pick it up. Tobio’s face burned, and he hoped it wasn’t obvious.

Once he seated himself at the table next to Suga (who was on break), he heard Shouyou ask, “Suga-san, did you finally hire a new cashier?”

“Ah, yes we did! He just started this morning, actually…”

Tobio looked at his boyfriend in amazement. It was no secret that Shouyou was not the most observant person: one time, he hadn’t realized that two of his teammates on the college volleyball team were dating until he saw them kiss at the end of a party, nearly two months after they had started seeing each other. It continued to be a popular joke on the team; Tobio knew this because he played on the same team with Shouyou. So, he was surprised that Shouyou had hardly taken any time to notice the new cashier.

_Did the new guy catch his eye, too?_

* * *

Once the two customers left the café, Suga went up to Kei and asked, “How are you doing so far?” 

“I’m starting to get used to this process, I think.”

“You’re doing pretty well for someone on their first day. And Daichi and I have heard no complaints so far, either.”

“Um…” 

Kei hesitated for a moment, and Suga waited.

“The last customers, the short orange-haired boy and the tall black-haired one…”

Suga smiled, “That’s Hinata and Kageyama. They’re students at the local university. They were one of our first customers when we opened three years ago, and have been regulars ever since. They’re like old friends of this place and the staff, now. We try to offer them discounts because we know them, but Kageyama says he doesn’t want to cause us to go into a loss and shut down. That boy, really”. He laughed fondly and continued, “Oh, they’re so perfect for each other, though. Two volleyball idiots.”

Kei was mildly confused by one detail.

“For each other…?”

“Oh, that’s right! The staff and most of the customers know this, so I forgot that you wouldn’t. They’ve been together for five years, now. Today was their anniversary, actually.”

“I see.”

“Was there a particular reason you inquired about them, Tsukishima?”

Kei shook his head.

“Ah, not really. I was curious because you seemed to know them really well.”

“Hahaha, Daichi lets me take a break whenever they visit. I guess you could say I know them well.”

Kei nodded. As Suga walked away, Kei thought about the real reason he had asked about them; he had been stared at by several people, irrespective of gender, but the stormy blue eyes belonging to a relatively calm face and the feeling of sunshine radiating from his partner had made _him_ stare, for the first time.

* * *

“Let me through, dumbass! I won the race!”

“Never! And you cheated; you started one second early!”

A few days had passed since Kei had first seen the two of them, and he watched for a few moments as they squabbled in the doorway, preventing the other customers from entering or leaving the café. He lost his patience after approximately five minutes of this and marched up to them.

“If we lose any more customers because of your antics, I’m going to charge you double for your order today”, he informed them coolly.

When Tobio looked up, the man in front of him made him momentarily forget about the competition he was having with his boyfriend. This caused him to lose his balance and fall to the ground, Shouyou yelling victoriously. Kei looked around and saw smiles on the faces of the rest of the staff as they got back to work. _That’s right, they’re used to this; they’ve seen it every day_ , Kei realized. With a silent apology to the waiting customers, he stood behind the register once again, ready to take orders. This time, he noticed, the shorter male- _Hinata_ \- was placing the order.

From the corner of his eye, Kei snuck glances at the couple. He was half amused and half annoyed by their eating habits, which mainly consisted of shoving as much food as possible into their mouths. _How hungry could they honestly be,_ he wondered, _to eat like that?_ Then he took note of their attire and speculated that they had come to eat right after volleyball practice (based on the information Suga had given him earlier). The annoyance he had felt a few moments ago dissipated a little.

As they were closing up the café later, Kei decided to ask the reliable barista, Ennoshita, about Shouyou and Tobio.

“Ennoshita-san, are those two always like that?” 

“Yes, they are. At first, we didn’t know what to do about it, but after all this time, the old-timers (staff as well as customers), just let them be. One look from Daichi-san scares them into obedience, though. They were fortunate he was in his office when they arrived today.”

Kei silently went back to checking the accounts and counting money, not noticing Ennoshita’s thoughtful stare.

* * *

As he lay in their bed, Tobio couldn’t help but recall the events that had happened at the café. Throughout the meal, Shouyou had poked his perpetually pink cheeks and teasingly said, “Tobio-kun, it’s fine, we all have bad days when we lose.”

Tobio had wished he could say that losing the competition was what was causing him to blush so profusely. The source of his embarrassment was actually the reason he had lost. He couldn’t believe that the handsome cashier had caused him to get distracted enough for Shouyou to win. He had also been embarrassed because of his mortifying and less-than-graceful fall in front of the same person. At that moment, he had felt cold judgment emanating from those golden-brown eyes.

Tobio sighed outwardly. He looked across the bed at his boyfriend, presumably asleep, and admonished himself for even _thinking_ about eyes that didn’t belong to Shouyou, no matter how mesmerizing the individual they belonged to was. Feeling slightly guilty, he turned to the other side, facing the wall, and tried to fall asleep.

Unbeknownst to him, Shouyou was wide awake, trying to do the same.

* * *

“Suga-san, what do you think of Tsukishima?”

“The new cashier? He’s quiet, but he’s good at his work. Why do you ask, Ennoshita?”

“While we were closing up last night, he asked me about Hinata and Kageyama’s… competitive antics, if that’s what those are.”

“Heh, interesting.”

“You think so too, don’t you?”

“For a person who mostly keeps to himself, doesn’t socialize much with other staffers, and seems guarded, it’s interesting that he would inquire about them both the times they visited.”

“You noticed those traits as well, I suppose. What should we do?”

“Let’s just watch this from the sidelines for now. I’m excited to see how this plays out!”

“Suga-san, you sound just like the scheming manager you are.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things move along, slowly, but steadily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for this being so late! I'm going to try to keep a more regular schedule from now on. Thank you so much for your patience!
> 
> Without further ado, the second chapter.

Shouyou knew, without a doubt, that he was a lucky man.

When he and Tobio had started dating, Tobio had seemed very skeptical of things working out in the long term, and this had made him behave very strangely for the first few weeks. When Shouyou had confronted him about it, he had expected to hear something like “You’re too much to handle, dumbass”. Instead, he had gotten a glimpse into Tobio’s own insecurities, through “One day you’re going to realize you can do so much better”. The ‘than me’ at the end of that sentence went unspoken, but not unheard.

Since then, he had felt immensely treasured and loved, day after day. And he had been certain that there would be no one else, no one, who could make him feel the excitement the way his boyfriend did. But blond hair, brown eyes, and a name tag reading ‘Tsukishima’ flashed in front of his eyes, all belonging to the same individual who refused to leave Shouyou’s mind.

As he prepared to leave for volleyball practice, he thought back to the most recent conversation he had with the cashier while he was ordering food at the register.

_“Hey, Tsukishima!”_

_“… Do you greet everyone with this familiarity when you meet them? Even if you don’t know them?”_

_“I’m doing well, too, thanks for asking. Anyway, how’s it been, working here?”_

_“Good, sort of. It’s mostly peaceful here; well, peaceful until you and your boyfriend show up.”_

_“What did you say?!”_

It reminded Shouyou of the first time he had spoken to Tobio, years ago. They had bickered and bickered and nearly gotten kicked off the high school volleyball team they wanted to join. Even when they were finally allowed to become members, there had been a lot of arguments, but on the court, they worked seamlessly, like they were one.

He hadn’t clicked with anyone else in that bizarre manner until Kei had come around. While the latter continued to be formal around him and reveal as little as he could, Suga had told Shouyou that he was actually a really considerate person, and this interesting contrast made it difficult for Shouyou to quit trying to get to know the cashier. He hadn’t realized, until it was too late, that he had started connecting the idea of Kei to that of Tobio, until one day when he had thought of his boyfriend, and the cashier had popped into his thoughts out of the blue.

That had made him sit down and reevaluate what he was doing.

* * *

 

After practice, the two of them made their way over to the café, as usual. As they walked up to the register, they both hesitated at the sight of a different cashier but placed their orders nevertheless.

Picking up their food, Shouyou noticed a familiar figure sitting in their usual spot and realized with a jolt that it was Kei. The cashier didn’t have any food or drinks in front of him, so he was most likely waiting for his shift to begin. Shouyou saw that Tobio had a similarly surprised expression on his own face, and made a decision.

Walking up to the booth, he asked, “Would it be okay if we sat here too?”

Kei, who was caught off guard, looked up and was about to say no when it seemed to strike him that this was Shouyou and Tobio’s usual spot. Shouyou grinned and beckoned his boyfriend over silently when Kei said it was fine. It was quiet at first: Shouyou and Tobio nearly inhaled their food, and Kei was reading what looked like a novel. After eating, the two volleyball players took out textbooks and laptops and began to work. Kei didn’t react to any of the chatter until he heard Tobio say ‘Planarian’ and then tuned into the conversation.

“You dumbass! If I cut my leg off, do you really think it will regrow?”

“Oh, you’re right. Then I guess the answer key for this is wrong.”

Kei stared, disbelieving. Then, he asked, “What are you studying?”

Tobio responded, “It’s a class on biological classification, and we’re studying planarians right now.”

“Right. And what is this about cutting your leg off?”

“Well, I was telling Shouyou that since my leg would not grow back if I cut it off, a planarian would also- “

Kei’s jaw dropped open.

“I thought you both were idiots, but I didn’t realize you were such big idiots. Just because something happens in humans in one way, it doesn’t mean that it can’t work differently in other organisms. Do you make your own food in your body, like plants do? No! But photosynthesis does exist, doesn’t it?” Hearing Shouyou snicker quietly, Kei turned to look at him. “And _you_ , you don’t get to laugh because you’re in a similar position, if not worse. You agreed with him when he said regeneration was impossible. There’s a reason a class on biological classification exists: it’s to explain how every organism behaves differently, a concept that apparently isn’t obvious to idiots like you.”

Kei had stood up, mid-rant, and caught the attention of anyone in the café (which wasn’t much, as business was slow at that time). Shouyou and Tobio looked subdued, with conflicted emotions all over their face; on one hand, they couldn’t help but admit that Kei was smart, but on the other hand, they hadn’t been called idiots that many times in one go.

Sitting down and pushing his glass up the bridge of his nose, Kei said, “Well, now that that’s settled, I’m going to go back to my book.” 

There was a pause, and then Shouyou said:

“Please teach us!”

Kei looked up from the novel with his eyebrows raised.

“Not a chance. I’d rather throw myself off a cliff.”

“Oi!”

“Well, it’s true. I wouldn’t have the patience to deal with you both.”

Both Shouyou and Tobio’s shoulders slumped in disappointment. Kei huffed.

“But I know someone who does.”

* * *

 

“This is Yachi-san, and she has graciously agreed to teach you both”, Kei stated by way of introducing the short girl with blonde hair standing next to him.

“Ah, good evening! It’s nice to meet you, Hinata-kun, Kageyama-kun.”

She seemed nervous, so Shouyou tried to put her at ease by saying, “Hinata and Kageyama are fine, Yachi-san!”

“Now, I’m not going to teach you, but I’ll sit with the three of you to make sure you both don’t overwhelm her, okay?” Kei warned. Then, turning to Yachi, he asked, “What would you like, Hitoka-chan? Some food, or drinks?”

“No, it’s fine, Kei-kun! Thanks.”

“Tsukishima, get one hot chocolate please!”

“I didn’t ask you, Hinata.”

“EH?!?! Stingyshima!”

When Kei walked away to get something for himself, Tobio inquired, “How do you know him, Yachi-san?”

“We were classmates back in our first year, and similar study habits made us friends. We’re studying different things now, but we still study together from time to time.”

“Oh! So you’re also studying to become a doctor then”, Shouyou exclaimed. Yachi nodded, then asked, “What about you two?”

“Well, we’re hoping to become pro volleyball players and play on the national team”, Tobio said matter-of-factly. Yachi gaped at him. 

“That’s amazing! Such a cool career choice, unlike my mediocre goal of becoming a doctor, haha.”

Shouyou looked like he thought that was ridiculous.

“What are you saying, Yachi-san? Doctors save lives! I can’t think of anything more honorable and noble. Tobio and I are ‘idiots’, as Tsukishima says, and could never do what you would do someday.”

A blush formed on Yachi’s face, but before she could respond, Kei set food and drinks down and smirked.

“Heh, it seems like the two idiots have become geniuses overnight and actually have the time to chit-chat. But,” he frowned, “You're still wasting Hitoka-chan’s time; she can’t waste all day on you.”

Everyone scrambled to get to work.

“Right!”

Nearly two hours later, when Shouyou got up to get more food (“How do you eat so much but none of it goes towards your height or your intelligence?” “Oh, shut up, you.”), he saw Suga at the counter.

“Hey, Shouyou, how’s studying going?”

“Hey, Suga-san. It’s going well! Yachi-san is really good at explaining stuff." 

“That’s good! Hopefully, you’ll do much better in the upcoming exam.”

Thanks. By the way…”

“Yes?”

“Are Tsukishima and Yachi-san dating?” 

Suga blinked.

“What?”

“Sorry, it was a dumb question.”

The manager hastily answered, “I do see them studying here often, but it doesn’t seem so, no. I’ve actually seen Yachi stare at Shimizu every time she visits, just like she’s doing now." Shouyou spun around and saw this was true. "So no need to worry.”

“W-worry? I wasn’t worried at all; what would I be worried about? You’re funny, Suga-san”, Shouyou laughed nervously.

Suga smiled secretively at Shouyou’s retreating back.

Just then Ennoshita tapped on his shoulder. “Um, Suga-san, you look creepy, like one of your evil plans just succeeded.”

Without replying to what Ennoshita said, he pondered out loud, “So the interest is mutual, huh?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More developments! I really like the potential for friendship development that Tsukishima and Yachi have in canon, and I hope someday we see them interact much more.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are more friends and revelations.

Tsukishima Kei lived by one simple rule: avoid anything troublesome. It was his sure-shot way of leading a peaceful life. And, peaceful meant happy.

So, the little annoyance that Shouyou and Tobio had stirred up over the past few weeks was something that he could easily block out, right?

Wrong. They were becoming more and more salient with each day.

“You know”, he said, exhaustion evident in his voice. “When I tried to save your education, I didn’t realize you both would need your own tutor.”

“Huh?” Tobio exclaimed, indignantly, looking up from his laptop.

“Now, now, Tsukki, let’s not get too upset, okay? Yachi-san and I said we were okay with teaching them.”

Kei looked at Tadashi and wondered how he never ran out of patience. His best friend was sitting next to Hitoka and across from Shouyou, who was sitting next to Tobio. Kei thought back to how they had gotten in this situation in the first place.

A few days after Hitoka had started helping Shouyou and Tobio with their work, she had approached Kei with a concern.

_“The problems they face are quite different. Tobio can memorize anything quickly if he decides to, which helps him on exams even if he doesn’t understand something, but Shouyou learns better by understanding the concept. I can work with Shouyou, but Tobio might need someone else to help him. Do you know anyone who might be able to help?”_

_“I think I might have someone, yes. I can check with him and a few others.”_

_“Thank you!”_

_“Don’t thank me, Hitoka-chan; I put you in this troublesome situation. Why on earth did I think it was a good idea to help those two?”_

_“Ah, it’s no trouble at all. And I actually think it’s very thoughtful of you, Kei-kun.”_

Her smile from back then had been enigmatic, but Kei had done his best to not think about it. The first person that had come to mind at her words had been Tadashi, who had readily agreed to help Tobio out. And that was how the four of them, Hitoka, Shouyou, Tadashi, and Tobio, found themselves sitting at a booth in the café, studying as Kei worked his shift, occasionally stopping by and warning Shouyou and Tobio to not waste his friends’ time. This led to some arguments, but not nearly as many as Tobio and Shouyou started on their own. Their study companions watched on, wondering how two people who were so different had been together for so long.

One evening, after the study session was done and everyone had decided to eat something before going their separate ways, Hitoka asked, “How did you and Tobio meet, Shouyou?”

Tadashi, curious about the same. leaned forward to listen.

Shouyou looked excited to answer the question.

“Through volleyball! We went to the same high school and joined the team together. There was a lot of bickering back then- “

“You mean, more than now?” Kei asked, snidely, as he walked past their booth towards the register. Tadashi snorted.

“Anyway, at some point, we both realized we liked each other and- “

“Oi, you realized it long after I did.”

“Did not, Tobio!”

“Did too!”

“Well, it doesn’t matter now, does it?” Hitoka stepped in, trying to placate the two.

“It does!”, they exclaimed in unison. Tadashi giggled and Hitoka shook her head.

“Anyway”, Shouyou continued, “we ended up confessing at the same time and- wait, Kageyama-kun, if you realized it before I did, doesn’t that mean you were too chicken to ask me out sooner?”

There was a teasing smirk and a challenging glint in Shouyou’s eyes as he raised the question. Tobio stiffened, and a moment later, the verbal sparring had devolved into a physical fight in the booth.

“Who’re you calling chicken, dumbass?!”

Before anyone could blink, they were a tangle of limbs, trying to talk over one another.

“Now, now…”, Hitoka and Tadashi tried to get them to stop and bring them back to the topic at hand, but in vain.

“It’s no use”, Kei informed them flatly, wiping his hands on a towel, a sign that his shift had ended. “Once they get like this, it takes a while for them to calm down, small children that they are.”

“Kei-kun, isn’t there something you can do?” Hitoka almost begged.

“Me? Why should I get involved? This is troublesome”, he responded, leaving no room for discussion.

“But you know them better than us!”

“I don’t really know them; I just know about the things they get up to in the café.”

Hitoka sighed, defeated. The dueling duo continued to rage in the meantime. 

Looking at the hopeless expression on her face, Kei decided to step in.

“Oi, brats. Is this your foreplay or something?”

That did the trick. Both Shouyou and Tobio turned beet red and paused their scuffle, slowly turning to look at the barista. 

“Uh- no, that’s- it’s not like-” Shouyou stumbled over his explanation, botching it in the process.

“Save your explanations for later. You’ve wasted enough of our time with this nonsense. Don’t you have better things to do?”

The couple nodded soberly.

“Alright, then go home. Party’s over. Tadashi, you and I are going to walk Hitoka-chan home first.”

“Y-yes!”

Everyone knew better than to argue with Kei when he was pissed.

* * *

 

“You know”, Hitoka began, tentatively, “When you said you didn’t really know them…”

“What about it?” Kei nonchalantly inquired.

The three of them- Kei, Tadashi, and Hitoka- were walking towards the dormitories, where Hitoka lived. It was dark outside, long after sunset, and knowing how there were things that scared her, Kei had established early on in their friendship that he would walk Hitoka back to her place if they were hanging out together till nightfall. Hitoka protested every time, but she also expressed her gratitude afterward, so Kei kept up his habit.

“Doesn’t it seem strange to you that you helped people you don’t know?”

“Is it strange?”, he wondered out loud, eyes turned towards the sky. 

Tadashi had a thoughtful expression on his face as if he too was trying to figure out the point she was trying to get to. Hitoka pressed on.

“I mean, no offense, but you’re not the sort of person to care about someone until you know enough about them. It’s like, there’s a threshold they have to cross. You said you don’t really know Hinata and Kageyama-kun, and yet, you’re worried about the state of their studies to the extent that you found people to help them out. That’s unusual for you, Kei-kun.” 

 _And don’t I know it_ , Kei thought bitterly to himself without actually commenting on Hitoka's observation. Acknowledging his silence, she wisely chose not to push it any further. 

 _They have time_ , she reasoned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that we've established that they're all noticing something happening, it's time to move on to the main plot!
> 
> I'm honestly so sorry for making you all think I ditched this story, and I want to assure you that I did not. Thank you for sticking around for this update, and there will be more soon!

**Author's Note:**

> I'm experimenting with writing longer chapters this time! All kudos, feedback, and comments are really appreciated! ^_^


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